“Major League Soccer continues to grow throughout North America and we are so proud to welcome Sacramento as our newest team,” Garber said during the announcement. “For many years, soccer fans in Sacramento have passionately supported Republic FC and shown that the club deserves to be competing at the highest level. Thanks to the determined efforts and commitment of new owners Ron Burkle and Matt Alvarez along with the leadership of Mayor Darren Steinberg, Sacramento will join MLS with a world-class soccer stadium that will transform the sport in California’s capital.”

Sacramento Republic FC is the 29th franchise expansion and is set to play in 2020. The team joins Los Angeles (Galaxy and LAFC) and San Jose (Earthquakes) as the 4th MLS team in California. A new 20,100-seat soccer stadium is also in the works and will be built in the downtown Railyards District.